Senior Gridder Named to NFF Hampshire Honor Society

April 23, 2009

April 23, 2009, Greencastle, Ind. — DePauw University senior Michael McNelis has been named today as a member of the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame's (NFF) 2009 NFF Hampshire Honor Society. A total of 564 players from 266 colleges and universities qualified for membership in the Society's third year. The Society which is comprised of college football players from all divisions of play who contributed greatly to their teams on the field and each maintained a 3.2 grade point average or better in the classroom.

"There is no question that the lessons learned on the field translate directly into success later in life," said NFF chairman Archie Manning, "and the members of the NFF Hampshire Honor Society serve as the perfect example of football's ability to teach leadership skills. We are proud to showcase the accomplishments of this group as part of the NFF's mission in promoting the scholar-athlete ideal.

Being a starter or a significant substitute in one's last year of eligibility at an accredited NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision, Football Championship Subdivision, Division II, Division III, or an NAIA college or university;

Achieving a 3.2 cumulative grade point average throughout entire course of undergraduate study; and

Meeting all NCAA-mandated progress towards degree requirements.

McNelis is a double major in majoring in economics and Spanish. This past season, he totaled 30 tackles including 14 solos, 5.5 for loss and 4.0 sacks. McNelis also had a team-high nine quarterback hurries, recovered a pair of fumbles and was named to the D3football.com Team of the Week following the Anderson game. He finished his career with 15.5 sacks which tied for fourth in school history.

In November, McNelis was named a first-team selection on the All-Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference team. He and fellow DePauw defensive end Alex Fitch were also selected to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District V College Division football team.